Functional properties of single neurons in the primate face primary somatosensory cortex. II. Relations with different directions of trained tongue protrusion

Biomechanical and Cortical Control of Tongue Movements During Chewing and Swallowing

Tongue function is vital for chewing and swallowing and lingual dysfunction is often associated with dysphagia. Better treatment of dysphagia depends on a better understanding of hyolingual morphology, biomechanics, and neural control in humans and animal models. Recent research has revealed significant variation among animal models in morphology of the hyoid chain and suprahyoid muscles which may be associated with variation in swallowing mechanisms. The recent deployment of XROMM (X-ray Reconstruction of Moving Morphology) to quantify 3D hyolingual kinematics has revealed new details on flexion and roll of the tongue during chewing in animal models, movements similar to those used by humans. XROMM-based studies of swallowing in macaques have falsified traditional hypotheses of mechanisms of tongue base retraction during swallowing, and literature review suggests that other animal models may employ a diversity of mechanisms of tongue base retraction. There is variation among animal models in distribution of hyolingual proprioceptors but how that might be related to lingual mechanics is unknown. In macaque monkeys, tongue kinematics-shape and movement-are strongly encoded in neural activity in orofacial primary motor cortex, giving optimism for development of brain-machine interfaces for assisting recovery of lingual function after stroke. However, more research on hyolingual biomechanics and control is needed for technologies interfacing the nervous system with the hyolingual apparatus to become a reality.

Beyond language: The unspoken sensory-motor representation of the tongue in non-primates, non-human and human primates

The English idiom "on the tip of my tongue" commonly acknowledges that something is known, but it cannot be immediately brought to mind. This phrase accurately describes sensorimotor functions of the tongue, which are fundamental for many tongue-related behaviors (e.g., speech), but often neglected by scientific research. Here, we review a wide range of studies conducted on non-primates, non-human and human primates with the aim of providing a comprehensive description of the cortical representation of the tongue's somatosensory inputs and motor outputs across different phylogenetic domains. First, we summarize how the properties of passive non-noxious mechanical stimuli are encoded in the putative somatosensory tongue area, which has a conserved location in the ventral portion of the somatosensory cortex across mammals. Second, we review how complex self-generated actions involving the tongue are represented in more anterior regions of the putative somato-motor tongue area. Finally, we describe multisensory response properties of the primate and non-primate tongue area by also defining how the cytoarchitecture of this area is affected by experience and deafferentation.

Directional information from neuronal ensembles in the primate orofacial sensorimotor cortex

Neurons in the arm and orofacial regions of the sensorimotor cortex in behaving monkeys display directional tuning of their activity during arm reaching and tongue protrusion, respectively. While studies on population activity abound for the arm motor cortex, how populations of neurons from the orofacial sensorimotor cortex represent direction has never been described. We therefore examined and compared the directional information contained in the spiking activity of populations of single neurons recorded simultaneously from chronically implanted microelectrode arrays in the orofacial primary motor (MIo, N = 345) and somatosensory (SIo, N = 336) cortices of monkeys (Macaca mulatta) as they protruded their tongue in different directions. Differential modulation to the direction of tongue protrusion was found in >60% of task-modulated neurons in MIo and SIo and was stronger in SIo (P < 0.05). Moreover, mutual information between direction and spiking was significantly higher in SIo compared with MIo at force onset and force offset (P < 0.01). Finally, the direction of tongue protrusion was accurately predicted on a trial-by-trial basis from the spiking activity of populations of MIo or SIo neurons by using a discrete decoder (P < 0.01). The highly reliable decoding was comparable between MIo and SIo neurons. However, the temporal evolution of the decoding performance differed between these two areas: MIo showed late-onset, fast-rising, and phasic performance, whereas SIo exhibited early-onset, slow-rising, and sustained performance. Overall, the results suggest that both MIo and SIo are highly involved in representing the direction of tongue protrusion but they differ in the amplitude and temporal processing of the directional information distributed across populations of neurons.

Superficially located white matter structures commonly seen in the human and the macaque brain with diffusion tensor imaging

The white matter of the brain consists of fiber tracts that connect different regions of the brain. Among these tracts, the intrahemispheric cortico-cortical connections are called association fibers. The U-fibers are short association fibers that connect adjacent gyri. These fibers were thought to work as part of the cortico-cortical networks to execute associative brain functions. However, their anatomy and functions have not been documented in detail for the human brain. In past studies, U-fibers have been characterized in the human brain with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). However, the validity of such findings remains unclear. In this study, DTI of the macaque brain was performed, and the anatomy of U-fibers was compared with that of the human brain reported in a previous study. The macaque brain was chosen because it is the most commonly used animal model for exploring cognitive functions and the U-fibers of the macaque brain have been already identified by axonal tracing studies, which makes it an ideal system for confirming the DTI findings. Ten U-fibers found in the macaque brain were also identified in the human brain, with a similar organization and topology. The delineation of these species-conserved white matter structures may provide new options for understanding brain anatomy and function.

Organization of cortical processing for facial movements during licking in cats

We proposed that cortical organization for the execution of adequate licking in cats was processed under the control of two kinds of affiliated groups for face and jaw & tongue movements (Hiraba H, Sato T. 2005A. Cerebral control of face, jaw, and tongue movements in awake cats: Changes in regional cerebral blood flow during lateral feeding Somatosens Mot Res 22:307-317). We assumed the cortical organization for face movements from changes in MRN (mastication-related neuron) activities recorded at area M (motor cortex) and orofacial behaviors after the lesion in the facial SI (facial region in the primary somatosensory cortex). Although we showed the relationship between facial SI (area 3b) and area M (area 4delta), the property of area C (area 3a) was not fully described. The aim of this present study is to investigate the functional role of area C (the anterior part of the coronal sulcus) that transfers somatosensory information in facial SI to area M, as shown in a previous paper (Hiraba H. 2004. The function of sensory information from the first somatosensory cortex for facial movements during ingestion in cats Somatosens Mot Res 21:87-97). We examined the properties of MRNs in area C and changes in orofacial behaviors after the area C or area M lesion. MRNs in area C had in common RFs in the lingual, perioral, and mandibular parts, and activity patterns of MRNs showed both post- and pre-movement types. Furthermore, cats with the area C lesion showed similar disorders to cats with the area M lesion, such as the dropping of food from the contralateral mouth, prolongation of the period of ingestion and mastication, and so on. From these results, we believe firmly the organization of unilateral cortical processing in facial SI, area C, and area M for face movements during licking.

The neurobiology of swallowing and dysphagia

The neurobiological study of swallowing and its dysfunction, defined as dysphagia, has evolved over two centuries beginning with electrical stimulation applied directly to the central nervous system, and then followed by systematic investigations that have used lesioning, transmagnetic stimulation, magnetoencephalography, and functional magnetic resonance imaging. The field has evolved from mapping the central neural pathway and peripheral nerves, to defining the importance of specific regions of the lower brain stem in terms of interneurons that provide sequential control for multiple muscles in the most complex reflex elicited by the nervous system, the pharyngeal phase of swallowing. The field is now emerging into defining how the higher cortical regions interact with this brain stem control and is providing a broader perspective of how the intact nervous system functions to control the three phases of swallowing (i.e., oral, pharyngeal, and esophageal). Much of the present interest focuses on how to retrain a damaged nervous system using a variety of stimulus techniques, which follow fundamentals in rehabilitation of the nervous system.

Modular organization of directionally tuned cells in the motor cortex: is there a short-range order?

We investigated the presence of short-range order (<600 microm) in the directional properties of neurons in the motor cortex of the monkey. For that purpose, we developed a quantitative method for the detection of functional cortical modules and used it to examine such potential modules formed by directionally tuned cells. In the functional domain, we labeled each cell by its preferred direction (PD) vector in 3D movement space; in the spatial domain, we used the position of the tip of the recording microelectrode as the cell's coordinate. The images produced by this method represented two orthogonal dimensions in the cortex; one was parallel ("horizontal") and the other perpendicular ("vertical") to the cortical layers. The distribution of directionally tuned cells in these dimensions was nonuniform and highly structured. Specifically, cells with similar PDs tended to segregate into vertically oriented minicolumns 50-100 microm wide and at least 500 microm high. Such minicolumns aggregated across the horizontal dimension in a secondary structure of higher order. In this structure, minicolumns with similar PDs were approximately 200 microm apart and were interleaved with minicolumns representing nearly orthogonal PDs; in addition, nonoverlapping columns representing nearly opposite PDs were approximately 350 microm apart.

Tongue protrusion: a simple test for neurological recovery in rats following focal cerebral ischemia

A simple tongue protrusion (TP) test is described for rats following focal ischemia induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). MCAO resulted in a dramatic decrease in TP that correlated with a concomitant decline in neurological performance in standard 5- and 20-point tests and deficits in performance in the Morris water maze and the accelerating rotarod. TP values also correlated with infarct size at 7 and 24 days following MCAO. This simple and inexpensive test, that monitors the ability of rats to lick food out of a glass tube, is easily administered, can be administered frequently without changing baseline performance, is not susceptible to behavioral compensation and should not interfere with other tests used concurrently to evaluate neurological deficit. The TP test may, therefore, serve as a useful addition to the battery of tests commonly used to assess neurological damage in rats, particularly in models of stroke.

Masticatory force and function in patients with hemispheric brain infarction and hemiplegia

Recent functional animal studies have reported that the motor control of masticatory muscle function is bilaterally guided by both hemispheres, which may fundamentally differ from the cortical control of limb muscle function. In this study, we investigated whether unilateral cortical brain infarction induces different impairments in masticatory and upper limb motor performance. Evidence of the importance of both hemispheres in controlling masticatory movements would be greater if the masticatory function were shown to be unimpaired in patients with severe hemiplegia. The masticatory function of 16 patients with severe hemiparesis caused by brain infarction in the region of the middle cerebral artery was studied by means of interview, clinical examination, and bite-force measurements. Finger-thumb grip-force measurements and clinical examination of the upper limbs were also performed for evaluation of the effect of infarction on upper limb motor function. Localization of the infarction was confirmed with computer tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. The Scandinavian Stroke Scale demonstrated that each patient had a major unilateral cortical infarction which had caused a marked handicap with a serious impairment of upper limb function on the contralateral side. The clinical examination revealed no major signs of temporomandibular disorders, and the masticatory muscles, when examined by palpation, contracted symmetrically. None of the patients with unilateral brain infarction showed any differences in bite forces between the healthy and paralyzed sides. These results indicate that, in hemiparetic patients, great differences may exist between the motor performances of the masticatory and upper limb muscles. The present investigation clinically illustrates the importance of both hemispheres in the control of masticatory function and movements.

Effects on non-human primate mastication of reversible inactivation by cooling of the face primary somatosensory cortex

Rhythmical jaw movements can be evoked by intracortical microstimulation within four physiologically defined regions, one of which is the primary face somatosensory cortex (face SI). It has been proposed that these regions may be involved in the selection and/or control of masticatory patterns generated at the brainstem level. The aim here was to determine if mastication is affected by reversible, cooling-induced inactivation of the face SI. Two cranial chambers were chronically implanted in two monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) to allow access bilaterally to the face SI. A thermode was placed on the dura or pia overlying each SI that had been shown with micro-electrode recordings to receive intraoral inputs. A hot or cold alcohol-water solution was pumped through the thermodes while the monkey chewed a small piece of apple or a sultana during precool (thermode temperature, 37 degree C), cool (2-4 degrees C), and postcool (37 degrees C) conditions. Electromyographic (EMG) activity was recorded intramuscularly from the masseter, genioglossus, and anterior digastric. Cooling of SI impaired rhythmical jaw and tongue movements and EMG activity associated with mastication in one monkey (H5), and modified the pattern of EMG activity in the other (H6). The total masticatory time (i.e., time taken for chewing and manipulation of the bolus before swallowing) was increased. This was due principally to an increase in the oral transport time (i.e., time taken for manipulation of bolus after chewing and before swallowing: monkey H6, control, 2.7 sec; cool, 5.2 sec, p < 0.05); the bolus was manipulated by the tongue during this period before swallowing. Within the chewing time (i.e., time during which chewing occurred), cooling resulted in a significant increase in anterior digastric muscle duration, a significant delay in the onset of masseter EMG activity, and a significant increase in the variance of genioglossus EMG duration. The data support the view that the face SI plays a part in modulating the central pattern generator for mastication.